Studying CyclonesResearchers use a computer atmosphere simulation model to study lifecycles of tropical cyclones. Read more
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Tropical storm tracks and dates (December 2006, January 2007). Simulated (green) and observed (red).
Studying Cyclones
Manoa researchers are part of group of scientists studying cyclones who have analyzed the initial results of the first computer model that simulates the global atmosphere with a detailed representation of individual clouds.
The model, called the Nonhydrostatic ICosahedral Atmospheric Model, was developed for the supercomputer Earth Simulator at the Japan-Agency for Marine Earth Science and Technology. Given the atmospheric conditions that were present one to two weeks before the observed cyclones formed, the model successfully reproduced the birth of two real tropical cyclones that formed in the Indian Ocean in December 2006 and January 2007.
The model captured the timing and location of the formation of the observed cyclones as well as their paths and overall evolution. “We attribute the successful simulation to the realistic representation of both the large-scale circulation and the embedded convective vortices and their merging,” says Postdoctoral Fellow Hironori Fudeyasu, lead author of the study.
“The high temporal and spatial resolution datasets provided by NICAM in this and future simulations will allow detailed studies of tropical cyclone genesis and evolution, as well as other weather and climate-related phenomena,” says Professor Yuqing Wang, IPRC research team leader. Wang believes the results will usher in a new era in weather and climate prediction